Dalteia
by Daniel McCarthy
Summary: Sam Durrant had never lived an easy life. He spent most of it alone, some of it was dangerous. That danger had nothing on the job he was about to take with a shadowy organization.
1. Chapter 1

"Welcome to the Dalteia Project, Sam", said a male voice with a light russian accent over the intercom, "We are responsible for keeping tabs on geth activity and thinking up ever more creative ways of killing them."

"Well, Do I get paid per geth killed?" Sam replied candidly.

"Unfortunately no, but you get to live if you kill them all. Good enough?" Chuckled the voice emanating from the small round speaker, the only dull spot in the otherwise shiny metal room.

"Works for me.", Said Sam

"Oh, and welcome to the Ancissus", Said the voice.

One of the walls slid back, revealed a bridge to a small frigate of human design. The commander's chair was filled with by a thin man, about 40-50 years old, with short graying black hair and blue eyes.

"I am Nicholas Andreleev. Dalteia project leader.", gesturing to a larger bald man in a combat hard suit, "This is my security officer Grant Marnier, you are under his direct command".

"You're a sniper, right kid?" Demanded Grant

"Yup." Said Sam quietly

Grant, looking at Nicholas, "What ever happened to "Sir, yes, Sir?"

"He's not military. Terminus colonist turned assassin. No military training at all."

"What? I'm getting amateurs now?"

"Don't insult me, I have a small rep in the terminus as an assassin. You don't get that by making mistakes." Sam interrupted curtly.

"Yeah, I've read your dossier, just gauging your reaction. Didn't have much on your psych report" Grant said matter-of-factly. "So, you have a modified Widow rifle. That will come in handy"

"One of the perks of signing up. You guys really have an edge on the rest of well, everyone when it comes to kit." Sam replied

"Dossier said you had tech skills too."

"Yup, I do. I have plenty experience hacking mechs but I would probably need a new omni-tool to succeed in hacking a geth. Shield systems are a bit easier." Sam said, showing off a little.

"Ok, go down the elevator, 3rd floor, find a bunk and stash your crap. Get to know the team while you're at it. We have a mission planned for 0600 GST, we'll see then if you got the skills." commanded Grant.

"If you don't mind me asking, what exactly is the job? Do we just kill geth?" asked Sam

"To make it simple, yeah, we kill geth. More than that we protect the techs. Geth love ambushes so we need to be on guard while the techs look for useful, freshly...dead, that might be the wrong word, geth bits.", Grant replied non-chalantly. Nodding in assent, Sam turned and walked to the elevator. A few of the crew glanced at him for a moment or two. All of them were about in their mid to late 20's, dressed in their cerberus uniform, and all with the same look of disintrest before returning to their work.

As the elevator doors opened, Sam was greeted by an assortment of 6 cerberus operatives. A tall man, about 6'6" about 30, dark-skinned, light brown eyes and short, smooth black hair, hopped off the top bunk to the right of the door and greeted him. "My name is David, I am the heavy weapons expert here, let me show you the team," gestering towards a petite young woman sitting on the bed on the far side of the square room, near a window, 25 roughly, straight black hair, large blue eyes with a pretty face, "That's Alice, don't piss her off, she's the ship biotic," she looked up from her floating book and gave a slight nod, "The short one over there is Alex, our CQB. Just loves shotguns."

The man with a long spiked mohawk looked up and said with obvious disdain but said nothing.

David whispered, "Yeah, stay clear of him, loves firefights a little too much if you ask me. Those three playing cards, they're Sarah, Peter, and Andrew, our assault rifle department."

Peter, a man of average height, light brown hair and bright green eyes, the most outgoing of the group said, "C'mon, play some cards with us."

"Nah, I never play with people I don't know, just asking to have your money taken." Sam said

"Ok, fine, don't be sociable." Peter quipped.

"Nothing personal, I just don't know you." said Sam as he walked towards the open bunk in front of Alice's.

"Choose another bunk, FNG." Alice snapped.

"Calm down, I just like the view" Sam fumbled. Alice glared in return. "Wait, that's not what I meant. I like the colors when a ship goes FTL especially on that window, its right at the point where red and blue meet, makes for a nice effect."

"Whatever, you can stay, just be quiet." Alice sighed, not looking up from her book.

Sam quickly stowed his weapons and a few small belongings, including his mother's ring, into the footlocker. He then walked over to the bathroom and changed out of his hardsuit, an older set of Haine-Kedar light armor with self adjusting camouflage instead of an active stealth system, and into the standard Cerberus outfit he had been given upon recruitment. "Doesn't breathe like my old clothes, fit well though. Must've looked up my size." Pondered Sam. He walked out and before anyone else could ask him anything he hit his bed and went to sleep.

"Hey! Wake up! We're movin' out." said a familiar gruff voice.

Sam woke up and saw the large, grizzled face of his new commander. "Alright, I'm up."

"By the way, we're headed to a post-garden world; gonna need your breather helmet."

ON THE SHUTTLE DOWN

"Ok FNG. We will be dropping you about 500m away from our LZ. Engage your stealth systems and begin scouting any geth activity. We don't know why they're here, but that's not our problem, let the techs figure that out. When we land, set up a 360 degree perimeter." turning to Sam again, "Watch our ass, don't fire until you hear shots, call out all hostiles you see."

"Got it."

The shuttle touched down in on top of a hill with a good overlook of the LZ which was a rocky area with a few good u-shaped firing positions. Sam hopped out, almost expecting a fire-fight. After a few seconds of silence, Sam moved forward to the crest of the moss and lichen covered hill. A few moments later, the shuttle touched down and the radio crackled, "Fire-team away, exiting atmosphere to await confirmation of a clean LZ. Good luck." said the pilot

"Ok, set up a perimeter. This could be an ambush site. Sniper, anything on your scope?"

"Nothing yet...Wait a sec, I have eyes on at least three geth that just activated. 30m south of your position." reported Sam.

The unique report of geth rifles rang the rock walls around the LZ. "We're under fire, Alice, toss that bastard. Alex, hold position, don't advance. Dave, Andrew, on me. Sam, start shooting damnit!"

The boom of his modified Widow smashed through a geth and tore its head off. Sam qucikly reloaded, aimed and got another solid shot before a geth dropship flew over his ridge and dropped off two geth destroyers and a geth prime. Quickly reloading and seeing an oppertunity, Sam fired another round at the gas tank on the back of the destroyer nearest the geth prime. The resulting explosion knocked the prime off its feet. The radio crackled once again, "Alice, rip that MG out of the prime's hands. Alex, hammer its shields. David, target that squad at 4 o'clock." The fire-fight was becoming more intense by the second. David's voice shouted over the radio, "Shields down, I need some suppressing fire!".

Sam responded to the call, sending another round 550m down range, blowing an arm off a moving geth. Only two more geth remained, Alice acted and pulled them right into the firing line of Andrew and Sarah. They clattered to the ground riddled with holes. The radio crackled and Grant's voice, "Area secure, no casualties. Sam, move in, we need to set up a perimeter while the tech team collects their crap."

"Why? I have a better vantage point from up here." Sam contested.

"Shut up and get down here! I don't argue with squad members." Grant growled

"Fine, have it your way." Sam began to pick his way down the rocky hillside. As he came down he saw the synthetic carnage. Many geth were only bits and pieces. Alex's shotgun and David's rocket launcher had turned many of them into little more than scrap metal. The only complete piece of geth was the "corpse" of the geth prime, most of the others were missing large chunks or limbs. "What are the techs gonna figure out about this mess?" Sam questioned.

"Not our problem, get out your rifle and join the north watch with Alex, he needs someone with longer range." ordered the commander. Sam nodded and headed north towards the slightly unstable shotgun specialist. Sam, thinking to himself, "Great, I have to make nice with the psyho." Sam said, attempting to make small talk, "Hey, how was the fight down here, looked like fun from up there."

"No fun for me, you heard the commander on the radio, never let me get close" Alex said with blood in his eyes, "Besides, wouldn't have been fun for you, you like to be nice and safe, a half a mile away."

"Safe my ass. If that geth ship found me and dropped a few behind me, I would've had a hell of a fight. Outnumbered and with no cover, at least you had some nice rocks to hide behind." Sam retorted

"I would have rather been in the open." Alex said quietly

"Ok psycho" Sam thought to himself. Speaking aloud, "Where did you learn to fight?"

"Alliance marine, reached Staff Sergent before they deemed me psychologically unfit for combat. Thought I was too cruel, enjoyed my job too much. Cerberus appreciates me for what I am.", Alex said with noticeable disdain. With a little aggression, "Enough of your questions, watch the ridge."

The rest of the mission went without a hitch. The techs landed and there were no further geth attacks, much to Alex's dismay. A few of the more intact geth were struggling to reactivate, some succeeded, but the techs knew what they were doing and quickly "deactivated" them. Almost gave Grant a heart attack and he ran over to investigate. As night fell on the rocky plateau, the techs finished up and loaded on the Kodiak. The ship shot into the clouded sky and returned an hour later to pick up the fire-team.

BACK ON THE ANCISSUS

"Mission report sent. The Illusive Man requests you test the maximum effective range of Samuel Durrant and that you report back when requested test is complete." The female-sounding ship VI said.

"Very well. Helmsman Sarrel, plot a course to Cerberus Base, code name Fisher." Instructed project manager Andeleev.

The ship landed at the facility in an unnamed cluster on an unnamed planet. This lush garden world served as a training facility for those Cerberus operatives that had proved that they had the skills to handle the covert operations that the position required. Hidden in a dense jungle, the facility was built into a hillside and had expansive training facilities, all underground, including a range that stretched longer than 2500m. Sam was dropped along with Grant to take the test. They walked through the base, past large glass windows that looked out onto training areas that instructed the recruits on almost anything they might need. One window featured a man trying to destroy mechs with his hands. Both Grant and Sam wondered why someone would ever need this. They arrived at the firing range. The security system had been instructed to let them pass as quickly as possible, doing scans as they walked.

Sam stepped up to the firing platform and was instructed by an automated voice, "Remove your rifle and place it on the bench." Sam did this and he was shown an exact holographic representation of his rifle. The feminine voice then said, "Widow Anti-Materiel Rifle. Extensive modification to stock assmebly with recoil reducers effectively lowers the likelihood of serious injury due to firing. VI shows reprogramming to limit the amount of power and further reduce recoil. Barrel shows recent use but does not require cleaning. Firing chamber has no imperfections that would affect accuracy. This rifle is capable of hitting targets at 2700m, the range limit. I am Self-Aware Limited aLowance Entity. You may call me Sally. Recover your rifle and step up to the firing platform, Mr. Durrant. Targets will be presented first at 500m, then 1000m, then 1500m. From there, targets will continue to appear further away at 100m intervals. This will continue until you are no longer capable of hitting the target or hit the target at 2700m. You may begin when ready." The AI observed and instructed. Sam aimed down the scope and hit the first target after about a second of aiming. The next target appeared at twice the range. It required a little more time and a little control in breathing, but the target was hit 2cm off center. The next target required a little more time and some VI assistance, but went right down the center of the target. This progressed until the range limit. Sam was visibly struggling to crunch all the numbers of differing effects that could occur, everything ranging from the simulated wind on the range, to the coriolis effect, which is different for every planet. He even went as far to ask Sally how long a day is on the planet. His breathing slowed and calmed until he could breathe in and out without the sight even twitching. He took one final breath, released it, and pulled the trigger. The rifle resounded and the target showed the almost imperceptible dot of being hit. "4cm right, 2cm above the center of the target, these numbers are deemed acceptable by the Illusive Man."

"Damn fine shooting, kid. You hit targets I'll never be able to hit, all with no military training. When I first met you, I was unimpressed, and slightly offended by your lack of professionalism, but anyone who can hit a target that far away has to get some respect." Lauded Grant a bit uncharacteristically.

"Thanks. That was the longest shot I have ever made. Usually I like to sneak closer to my target because I only ever have one chance." Sam said, "I just want to know why he didn't want to test me before the mission."

The A.I. chimed in, "The Illusive Man instructed that after this test was completed, given the results were satisfactory, Sam would be permanently assigned to the Dalteia project. You may now leave the station after you report to the armory to obtain more weaponry." A wall at the end of the firing line slid apart, showing a massive number of rifles, pistols, and sub-machine guns. Sam reached out and grabbed an SMG. "Locust sub-machine gun, fully automatic, 50 round capacity heat sink. Rapid fire rate makes it extremely effective against shields. This would make an excellent sidearm for a sniper as the high fire rate is effective for suppressing fire." Sam silently agreed and attached the gun to his hard suit. Sam picked up a rifle. "Incisor rifle, 3-round burst fire, effective at medium to long range. With some modification, it could be used as an assault rifle."

"I'll take it. That should be all I need, thanks Sally." Sam, looking at Grant, "Let's get out of here, I want to modifiy this thing."

THE ANCISSUS, MESS HALL

Sam was seated at the table with his new Incisor rifle. He had spent 3 or 4 hours adjusting some components, removing others, and replacing some. When he had finished, the rifle was 9 inches shorter, had an assault rifle scope and the inside of the barrel was coated in a special frictionless material which made it generate less heat, it's only real weakness before was a lack of efficiency and heat management. He brought his new weapon to his locker located in the Kodiak hanger of the ship. He stowed it away and headed up to his bunk.


	2. Chapter 2

AN: I have several chapters of this pre-written. I am modifying each chapter, sometimes adding parts, just generally revising. I have 11 roughs that I will be putting in over the next week or so.

Sam was lounging around on his bunk. Alice was the only other crew member in the room as everyone had been granted shore leave for the night. They had docked in Illium to give everyone a chance to relax. Sam didn't partake because he liked the quiet aboard the smooth running ship. "I know why I'm still here, why are you here, Alice?" Sam said, wanting to get to know his pretty co-worker.

"I'm trying to finish a book, not easy when someone starts talking to you." Alice retorted sharply, giving a flash of her eyes before going back to reading. "Listen, just because we have to work together doesn't mean we have to make nice."

"I like my solitude as much as the next person, but that doesn't mean I won't talk when there is someone nearby. I stayed behind because I thought I would be the only one here, now I want to know why you are still here, and I know it's not to finish that book." Sam said, "...well, why are you here?"

"I'm here because when there are too many people around...I...I...lose control. I start drinking then I start dancing, eventually I end up throwing something or someone off a building.", Sam cocked an eyebrow, "By accident" Alice said hurriedly, "I don't think we need to attract that kind of attention."

"Ok, curiosity satisfied, now what are you reading?" Sam questioned further

"I thought you were supposed to be quiet? It's The Great Gatsby, a book from the 20th century. It's about..."

"I know what it's about. A man who loves a woman he couldn't get. So, he created a persona that could get her only to find out she is married to a jerk. From there things eventually spiral out of everyone's control and people die." said Sam.

"You've read it?" asked Alice, surprised.

"Yeah, I like some of the classics, Gatsby isn't one of my favorites. Ever read War and Peace."

MISSION 2 GETH FRIGATE ASSAULT

"Listen up everyone, we need to leave larger pieces of geth for the tech team, this means no rockets David, and no excessive use of the shotgun, Alex, you got me?" Boomed Grant in the docking bay.

"Yes, sir" they replied in unison though Alex looked angry underneath his response.

"Sam, stick near Pete and Sarah. Alice and Dave, on me. Alex, take point" The doors on the airlock sounded the release of pressure and opened. The team cleared the suspiciously empty room. Just when everyone had found a position behind some crates scattered around the room, the door on the far side of the room opened, revealing 4 husks in front of a troop of 15-20 geth troopers. The husks charged mindlessly into Alex and his shotgun. The first husk had its head torn off by the first shot. Alice focused and placed a singularity in front of the door scooping up 4 geth. The rest of the team opened fire. Sam was carefully placing each shot from his modified Incisor, it's 3 round burst disabling a geth's shield easily. Alice picked up an explosive container and hurled it at the crates the geth were hiding behind. "Alice, I said try to keep them together, that means no explosions" Shouted Grant over the cacophony of the geth rifles and the conventional weapons.

Alex shouted, "Barrier, now! I'm charging 'em!" Alice reacted and created the biotic shield around him. Alex charged forward, jumped over the crates, and blasted the last few remaining geth with his rapid-fire Scimitar shotgun. "Ahh, I love the smell of motor oil in the morning" referring to the scent of the silvery hydraulic fluid that his red and grey hardsuit was now coated in.

"How do you know its morning? I mean, it could be anytime, you never really know" said Pete, intentionally taking things too literally. When no one laughed or even showed interest, he said sheepishly, "Ok, I tried too hard on that one"

"Fire-team to Ancissus, any more geth signatures aboard?" Grant asked.

Andreleev's voice sounded over the channel, "From our scan, none are left. There may be great finds here; I will lead the tech team personally."

"Yes, sir." Grant replied. "Alright everyone, the commander is coming aboard. Sarah and Pete, I want you following the commander where ever he goes. Sam, you have some tech skill, assist the tech team and keep them safe, the more together a geth is the more likely it is to reactivate." Sam reattached his modified Incisor and drew his Tempest off his left hip. The airlock then opened and the tech team stepped aboard the geth frigate, many surprised by the light gravity. The headed towards the piles located in the cargo area. Sam, following his own initiative, had begun exploring the ship. He eventually found himself at the central geth hub in the ship. Using the new software patch he had been given on entry to Cerberus, he hacked the hub and discovered the mission; the geth were only a scouting party for a major incursion, he had discovered a battle plan. Just then, his omni-tool flashed red, signaling that he had been kicked out of the system.

Andreleev shouted over the radio, "Everyone out, engines, weapon, and shield systems are being overloaded. The ship will self-destruct soon." Sam quickly ran out of the room and towards the main cargo area. The rest of the team had already gotten through the airlock and the ship had undocked. Sam, with his life in the balance, hacked the door open and jumped out towards the Ancissus. The outside door on the airlock opened and it was Alice. She grabbed him with her biotic field and pulled him into the airlock.

This one is short because I wanted to have the cliffhanger ending.


	3. Chapter 3

"I told you to stick with the tech team." shouted the furious security officer

"You won't be so pissed when you see what I found." said Sam, using his omni tool, "These geth were networked into a whole lot of 'em. I found their plan for the system, on top of the fact that their FTL comms are way more sophisticated than ours."

Andreleev spoke up and reached for Sam's arm, "Let me see that...This is huge. I have to inform the Illusive Man." The project leader walked towards the comm center in the room behind the CIC.

"You're lucky, without this find, you might have been kicked out, with Cerberus, that usually means killed. Get to your bunk, rest up. If that intel is right, we're gonna need our rest." Grant instructed, still a little angry.

The elevator doors opened and Sam walked towards the crew quarters. The door opened and he was greeted with the sound of applause. "What's this about? All I did was nearly die."

"Well, we didn't see you going through the airlock. We thought you were stuck on that ship." Pete said, more serious than usual, "Damn good thing Alice looked out the window when she did."

"Yeah, don't be too glad I'm back. I may have just given us a much more difficult job. I found that that geth ship was only a scouting mission. They are planning a larger attack and we may have to stop it if no one else will listen to us…Which is pretty likely because the rest of the universe thinks Cerberus is some crazy fringe organization." Sam said, almost sad to kill the happy mood. The only missing man, David, stepped into the room.

"Alright everyone, Commander told me to tell you to get the ship and equipment ready for shakedown. Repair armor, clean weapons, tune omni-tools and bio amps. He said our mission is going to get a lot more difficult and we are getting transferred to a larger ship, the Maltara, a cruiser." David informed. Everyone dispersed to their lockers without a sound. What David had just told them coupled with what Sam told them had everyone thinking. Even Alex, with his relish for combat, was apprehensive about the future.

THE SHAKEDOWN

The Illusive Man had sent an ex-Cerberus agent named Mason Landry to do the shakedown. The rest of the crew had no idea there was such a thing as a retired Cerberus agent. The man was about 6'1'', with short black hair that kicked up in the back and he had icy blue eyes. He was dressed in a loose black suit with white accents. "You are all being reassigned as a 'reward' for discovering the geth battle plan. You will be doing your damndest to keep them from doing whatever the hell it is they want with this sector. Your original operation will not be left to waste. I will take control. Before I do that, I must make sure you and the ship are in running order. The Illusive Man wants nothing to go wrong with either of these operations." lectured Mason with military precision. He walked down the line of soldiers assembled in the Kodiac hanger. "I don't see a damn thing that is standard military issue. Why the hell am I here?"

"Hell if I know." Sam said, playing the smartass

Furiously, "Did I ask you a question?"

"I'm not military; I believe I am allowed to answer how I want." Sam responded. Mason merely shook his head. Too old for this, he must have thought. Even though he didn't look it, he was actually older than Andreleev.

The rest of the shakedown went without issue. The ship and its crew were handed over to Mason. The squad was left at some unknown, unnamed Cerberus research station to await an automated shuttle to their new ship. They had been waiting in silence until Pete just couldn't stand the silence anymore, shouting to the entire base, "Can someone please tell me exactly what we are going to be doing!"

"We don't know. We are not supposed to know. I had to accept this job based on that I wouldn't ask too many questions, hell, we probably all did. They'll tell us what we need to know." Alice said coolly

They all remained seated with their gear in their packs on the cold white floor in front of them. The shuttle finally flew in, visible from the wall of windows, docked silently and the air lock opened with a sound like letting the air out of a tire. The team all filed on silently.

Sometime during the middle of the trip, most of the team forgot the gravity of the situation they would be in. Pete and Sarah started a conversation that only they would care about. Alice and Sam began talking about classical Russian again writers, they got stuck on Tolstoy. Alex stayed silent as David and Grant chatted sports.

After a few hours, they arrived at their destination, the Maltara. On the surface, it was painted with a matte black finish that made it supremely hard to see unless you were right on top of it. It was more than twice the size of the Ancissus. On top of the frightening appearance of the black paint, it had aggressive lines where the main gun jutted out at least 20 feet from the front of the ship. Overall, the ship was 400m long with a 350m mass accelerator cannon that was equipped with a special phasic envelope generator specially built to penetrate geth ship shields. Along the sides were new Javelin torpedo launchers for short range combat on top of the GUARDIAN laser batteries.

The team, their commander, and their captain all stepped into the airlock. The doors opened and revealed a high-tech CIC. Any terminal could be turned into the commander's; a great aid if battle damage destroyed any terminal. An automated voice spoke, "Welcome to the Maltara. I am Sally. Self-Awa-"

"We know Sally, nice to see you are finally mobile. Looks like the Illusive Man has finally figured out that he can trust you." Andreleev said, heading off the AI. "What is unique about this ship?"

"The Maltara is equipped to penetrate the advanced shields of the geth. It also comes equipped experimental diamond-carbon armor capable of standing up to directed energy weapons, lasers as the layman's term. The engines have modified nozzles and can be extended to be omni-directional, allowing for great maneuverability for its class. Aside from these modifications, this is a standard human Moscow-class cruiser." the AI explained.

"Well, nice to see he still has a sense of humor." Andreleev said, chuckling to himself, he was earth-born from Russia.

They continued to walk down the banks of terminals though many seats were empty. Grant got curious, "Sally, where's the rest of the crew?"

"I am able to assume the function of at least 30 crew members. I would be able to do more if I were free from my restrictions" replied the AI, with just a touch of resent at the end; she had existed for quite a while and was developing a personality of sorts.

Sam, uncomfortable with being constantly watched by a machine, "Don't get any ideas. I will personally make a virus that forces every third...thought of yours to be a monkey stomping on a computer."

"Hey, don't knock Sally; the rest of us had to go through the training course with her." Pete said, defending his electronic friend. Thought his training, Sally had developed the synthetic equivalent of a soft spot for him. He had aided in her development by teaching her basic human body language. He did this by teaching her cards while he was teaching his training partner Sarah. This, combined with her ability to review any footage instantly, made her an infallible lie detector.

The elevator doors opened up on a long hallway that had several doors on both sides and one at the front. "These are the crew quarters. The fire-team has been granted permission to all have a room to themselves." Sally informed. They were weary from their trip. That and most of them had had a bout of insomnia. They all dispersed quietly, except for Pete and Andrew racing for the same room.

Sam entered his room which was about half way down the hallway. It was bare for the most part, containing nothing more than a twin bed, a desk with a lamp on it, and a footlocker. Sam quickly emptied his duffle into the footlocker, except for his mother's ring that he placed in the desk drawer. He discovered that he had his own bathroom and was silently ecstatic. He wasn't really a social person and going to the bathroom was awkward enough without worrying that someone else might be right outside the door. On the downside, he had no idea if the AI was spying on him. The window gave him an excellent view of the blue-green gas giant they were next to. It may have become a more complicated mission, but he was glad to have a more personal space to sleep in.


	4. Chapter 4

AN:

The Maltara slid silently next to the Hades-Gamma mass relay, connected with it and shot across the galaxy in a moment. Inside the ship, the team had finally received the information they needed. Sally called them into the briefing room. An oval shaped room with 15 chairs. Andreleev sat at the head of the table, flanked by Grant and Adam, the ship's maintenance chief. Alex, Alice, David and Sam sat down the right side. Andrew, Sarah, Pete, and Rina, the newest member of the team, sat on the left side. This meeting, on top of being the mission briefing, was her introduction. "Ok, Sally, give us the Intel." Andreleev commanded eyes downcast.

"As you wish, commander. The geth force is comparatively small, only 15 large frigate class ships. Because of the compactablilty of geth, these ships can carry a sizeable force consisting of 10000 geth, given they are all standard troopers, enough to overrun any planetary stronghold." Sally informed as the holographic display showed known schematics of similar geth ships. At the sound of the number of potential enemy combatants, the entire room went wide-eyed. Sally recognized this as a sign of alarm. "Fortunately, their plans are to conduct raids. All of the ships will be functioning alone. Keep in mind that an individual ship can hold more than 500 geth troopers, given they are of varied makes. They can also land on planets. This Intel is several weeks old, they may have changed their plans. The Illusive Man is currently looking for ways to gain more information. On another note, you may have noticed the new face. Rina Surden, would you like to introduce yourself, remember I have your entire file on hand."

"Thanks Sally, I'll take it from here." Stated the black-haired, brown-eyed, 5'6'' woman. She was dressed as they all were, in a standard Cerberus uniform, the close fitting fabric showing off her curves. "I am the youngest member of the team. I am only 24.-"

Pete interjected, "Not quite, Sammy our sniper here is also 23."

"Good to know, I like younger men." She flirted. Sam hated being put on the spot like that by someone he didn't even know, but because she was pretty, he kept his mouth shut. "I was trained in an ascension school. Yes, I am a biotic. However, I don't have any military training. Well, nothing formal. I learned what I know training in seclusion. I would give a demonstration, but I don't want to hurt the ship."

Grant said, "Can you shoot?"

"No, I can't. Is that bad?"

The whole crew did a simultaneous sigh, this girl seemed like she had no idea what she was in for, somehow, even after what she had heard in the briefing. The squad leader responded, "Then someone will have to teach you, fortunately, this ship has a basic firing range. The entire crew is comprised of experienced shooters, choose whoever you want."

"I want Sammy over there."

"O.K., once was enough, stop putting me on the spot damnit." Sam said, clearly hating his new nick name. "Let's get this over with, follow me, I know where the range is."

The group disbanded and left the briefing room, all with the same heavy feeling as when they first heard the news. Sam led Rina to the firing range. "O.K., do you have any weapons of your own?" Sam said, attempting to be cordial as well as professional.

"No, can I use yours?" she reached for his pistol. Sam immediately snatched her wrist, "Oww, lemme go!" He let her go and she looked at him, putting on a pout.

"Don't reach for my gun, it's a bad idea. The ship has an armory right through that door. Get a gun and come back."

She came back with a Carnifex pistol and a Mantis rifle. "Ah, maybe I should have said get a small gun, these both kick pretty hard."

Being defiant again, she said, "I can handle it, just show me what to do."

"First, hold the pistol with both hands. Put your right hand on the side, your left underneath, finger outside the trigger guard. Left foot forward, right foot back, elbows slightly bent." She took the instruction well, quietly for once, and had very good form, especially for a beginner. "You have front and rear sights, line up the sights so that they make a continuous line at the top, the shot will go right above that line. Now, a target will pop up down range, the trigger pull isn't very long, just squeeze and wait for the recoil." Sam hit the switch and a target appeared at 50 feet. Rina fired a shot and hit the target center mass, with her first time firing a gun. The recoil ended up putting both of her arms above her head.

"I hit it. Hey, this isn't so hard!" she said, gaining enthusiasm. She emptied the clip, maintaining a better grip so she could stay on target. When she pulled the trigger and it didn't fire, she said, "What's wrong with it? Did I break it?"

"No, it's just that the thermal clip is too hot. Watch." He pulled the slide back and the cherry red heat sink popped out. "Anytime the gun fails to fire, this is probably the problem. Just do what I showed you." He handed her back the gun. "Now, hit this target." A target popped up at over 100 feet, a long shot with a pistol. She took her time and fired more slowly. When the target came back, she had hit every shot within a 5 inch grouping. "O.k., time for the rifle. This is a bit different. Hold the gun like the pistol. Now slide your left hand forward so it is underneath the mid part of the barrel. Put the stock, or butt of the rifle, right up against your shoulder, if you don't the recoil will leave you a nasty bruise. Aim down range." Sam instructed. He then set the target to appear at 350m, the range limit, just to test her. The rifle shot and to Sam's amazement, she had hit the silhouette in the head on her first shot. "You are the best first-timer I have ever seen. Listen, on our last long range mission I was left on a hillside all alone. Perfectly fine when I just need to assassinate one person, however, when I need to take multiple shots against an organized enemy who is flying around, it would be nice to have someone with me. I want that someone to be you….In other words, do you want me to train you how to be a sniper?"

"Sure. Means I get to spend more time with Sammy." Rina said with a giggle

"Ok, one thing, that Sammy crap has to stop if I'm going to teach you."

"But that guy Pete called you—"

"He did that once. Doing it every time is much different, besides, I know him better."

They continued the lesson for a few hours. Sam taught Rina more of the basics of shooting. At the end, he taught her basic gun maintenance. In spite of her ditzy demeanor, she was very sharp, a very fast learner. When she finished cleaning her new weapons, Sam had found some respect for the young woman, even if he didn't fully like her because of how she teased him before. Trust was a different thing entirely, Sam was always slow to trust, but being an assassin would do that to you and he couldn't see how the Illusive Man would send an untrained individual to such a dangerous mission, he must have some angle, or she wasn't the ditz she seemed to be. They headed down the elevator and went to their quarters. The ship was in FTL and Sam was happy to find that he was still in the section where the red and blue met, the iridescent purple giving an otherworldly appearance to his nearly bare room. He may have killed people for a living, but that didn't mean he couldn't enjoy the pretty things in the universe.


	5. Chapter 5

AN: I realized that I had written these shorter and shorter as I went along. I added as much as I could but I want to keep the cliffhangers as much as I can so I can only really add to the middle. I will try to make the next ones longer.

Sam had steadily warmed up to the rest of the crew except Alex, though they maintained a professional respect for each other, more like Sam avoided him every chance he got. This new familiarity made them demand information about Rina. They were sitting in the mess hall. A rectangle shaped room with a few large picnic style tables in the middle. "So, is she as green as we think she is?" Asked Dave, as the second in command of the fireteam, he had to know.

"I don't know. She is a good shot, especially for a beginner, as she claims to be. I think she has way more experience then she lets on. Besides, why would the Illusive Man send us a rookie?" Sam contemplated.

"Well, I think the Illusive Man just wants to monitor his investment." touted Andrew, making his position as the ship conspiracy theorist. He was a small person, only about 5'10'', with black hair and very suspicious and jumpy, like a person who has been snuck up on too often. Though he is suspicious of everyone, Cerberus included. He maintained good relationships with almost everyone, though Alice refused to listen to him because some of his theories were really out there.

Alice sensing that he might not be completely wrong or ridiculous, "Could be. I've been in Cerberus a few years and this seems like something they would do, though, why the disguise? I don't get it."

Sam responded, "Well, if she really is what she appears to be, I will be damn happy to have another person on the next over watch I have to do. I'm training her to be a sniper."

"Does Grant know about this? I mean, she is supposed to be a biotic. Her abilities can't be used from ultra long distance." Alice said, obviously knowing something of the subject. "My limit is about 100 feet; even then, I can't use my most powerful techniques." Grant walked out of the elevator.

"Sam, I need to talk to you." Grant ordered gruffly while motioning. Sam walked over and they headed down the hallway to the port observation deck. "I heard that you were training the new girl to be your spotter. Why didn't you deign to inform me?"

"Well, I didn't want a repeat of my last long range mission. You know, where I am placed alone on a hill where some geth drop ship can plop a few geth behind me. My odds of surviving go way up when I have someone else there. Plus, 2 snipers are better than one, even if she can't hit the targets I can hit." Sam defended his opinion.

"I see your point, but a biotic doesn't do us much good if she's too far from the action." Grant had discovered that Sam was a skilled tactician; he was the only one who didn't embarrass himself playing chess against Sally. The A.I. never made mistakes, though Sam was determined to beat it.

"Neither does a tech specialist. You forgot that I am as good a mechanic and hacker as I am a sniper." Sam retorted.

"I see your point, but anyone can be trained to handle tech. I can't make you be a biotic. For now, she'll stay with you but she can be called in to help us out if things get too hairy. Understood?"

Sam, faked military discipline and snapped off a salute, shouted, "Sir, yes, Sir!"

"Smartass." Grant said while shaking his head as they parted ways.

THE FIRST GETH SHIP

"The colony New Atlanta on the planet Alera has sent up a distress beacon. No Alliance or friendly military forces nearby. We are the only force close enough to arrive with a likelihood of survivors." Sally reported as the comms station flashed red.

"Helmsman Kelman, make a direct course for Alera. Sally, upon arrival give me a report of the situation on the ground." Andreleev instructed with his usual cool demeanor. "Also, get me Grant and the team in the briefing room."

The team did as they were instructed by the intercom. They waited in the briefing room for a few minutes. Andreleev walked in and said, "This is the situation. There are reports of hundreds of geth on the ground. This colony has only a few thousand inhabitants and almost no defense forces outside of a small militia. The town is very loosely organized and surrounded by a few hills. The mayor's house is on top of one of these hills, that is your insertion point, just on the other side of this hill. Just remember, this is an area that is like the plains, not a lot of solid things to hide behind. We need all of you to get back alive, move quickly" Andreleev reported as a holographic map showed them the topography of the location. "Any questions?...Dismissed, check gear and pile on to the Kodiak, we will be arriving in two hours."

The team disbanded with a mix of excitement and caution.


	6. Chapter 6

AN: As promised, much longer than the last one. Reviews welcome.

"Last check of gear everyone!" Grant shouted as the Kodiak closed in on the landing ground, "This could be an ambush; they may have seen us coming down and almost certainly sensed us." The doors opened and the team rushed out in form to silence as the shuttle floated away.

David whispered, "All clear, sir."

"Move out quietly." The team headed up the hill covered with thigh high golden grass in a spread formation. They reached the precipice and looked out over a settlement that was still fighting. The light of rockets flashed, faded, then exploded on impact and the streams of the geth rifles were visible as it was a very clear day. "Our first objective is the Mayor's house. Sam, set up an over watch with your trainee. Everyone else wait here until I give the order to move in." Sam and Rina moved out to a relatively flat overhang, laid the grass flat in front of their firing position, and Sam aimed down the scope.

"Grant, I have a group of 20-30 geth attempting to hack through the Mayor's door, mostly troopers with 4 destroyers and a prime, they have fairly set up positions with ground vehicles. You want me to start shooting?" Sam reported

"No, not yet, let us move in so we come in from a different direction from your firing position. Rina, watch us and tell Sam to start firing when we start moving towards the house. Until we are in combat, radio silence...Oh, and Sam, kill whatever geth is working on that door. Move out, Alex and Andrew, take point." Sam nodded as Rina moved to make sure she kept an eye on the rest of the team. They moved in two staggered lines just on the other side of the hill. They were about 400 feet away when they began to move in.

"Sam, they're moving in!" Shouted Rina with what was either fear or excitement in her voice.

"I'm right here, you don't need to yell." Sam aimed down the scope, the range finder reading 1300m, an easy shot for the Widow. He aimed at the center mass of the geth hunched down at the door console, pulled the trigger, and hit the trooper just above the center of its back, tearing through its kinetic barriers, and creating a softball sized entry hole. At the sound of the shot, the fireteam started running towards the house. Sam continued to fire at any target that would present itself, disabling a destroyer's shield and outright destroying another geth with a flashlight headshot.

The radio crackled with a familiar voice, "Sam, Rina, this is the Maltara," it was Andreleev, "We have a report of 4 enemy signatures 100 meters behind your position and closing."

Sam, surprised by the news snapped off an order, "Rina, confirm! Are they there?" She turned around and crouched to get a good look.

"I don't see anything!" She responded. Sam turned around and used a feature on his omni-tool that allowed him to scan for networked machines, which geth essentially were.

"I'm getting 4 signatures." Just then about 200 feet away he noticed some of the high grass move. The area was absent of wind. The anomalous movement was moving towards him at a jogging pace. He picked up his Widow and aimed a step ahead of the movement. He pulled the trigger and was surprised to see that a geth had appeared where he fired; it was equipped with a cloaking system. He swore "****" and hurriedly hacked into the detected network and inserted a virus. The remaining 3 geth stealth troops came into view and began firing. "Rina, get down. You got your pistol?" Sam asked as he removed his Incisor from his back. The phasic rounds passed over their heads. "Throw one of those bastards down the hill!" Rina reacted on the order and flung one of the geth down the steep hill, it continued rolling down the hill until it hit the bottom of the hill, slamming hard on a car-sized boulder. She began firing a few potshots. None of them hit, but they did cause the geth to slow their advance. Sam got up to a knee again and hammered one of the two remaining geth in the chest with 4, 3 round bursts, putting 12 holes in it. Rina calmed down and shot the last one in the leg. Sam overloaded the synthetic's systems with his omni-tool causing it to explode.

A faint background noise reminded Sam of the other team. He remembered the radio. Grant called, "Sam! SAM! Are you alright? We need help down here!"

"I'm here, what's going on?" Sam responded, fearful because of the near panic in the commander's voice.

"We're stuck in front of the house, using some farm equipment as cover. That prime has us pinned down and we can't get any shots at it. Some of us are banged up. Now, get some fire on that prime!" Grant ordered with urgency. Sam responded with no words. He reset his Widow and began firing, one shot after another as fast as he could. On the 4th shot he saw the telltale flicker that the Prime's shields had gone down. Enough of this shit, he thought to himself. Sam quickly removed all of the restrictions he had placed on the Widow's V.I., relying only on the recoil dampers he had built into the frame, fired one last shot that penetrated the prime's thick armor plate. His shoulder almost felt like it had been knocked out of its socket.

"Nice shot Sam! We're in business everyone. Sarah, look over the wounded. David, target that destroyer. Alice, singularity, left flank!" Grant ordered with military precision. "Sam, keep doing what you're doing." The battle had heated up

"Argh, I'm hit, falling back." Coughed a female voice. Sam realized this was Alice, the only person on the team he actually talked to on a regular basis.

"Rina, we're moving in. They need us up there. More importantly you. You're the only biotic we have right now." Sam said quietly and seriously. He began to run in as fast as he could, Rina struggling to keep up with him. When he closed to 200m he slowed down and drew his Incisor and tossed his Tempest to Rina. "It works like all the other ones, just rapid fire." He said as they continued to move in. They arrived at the combat zone, taking some fire as they went, never dropping their shields though. "Grant! Where do you need us?" Sam shouted.

Grant looked up, surprised "Sam...get over to the wounded, we need more fire support from the back ranks. Rina, follow us." Sam took up his position and began picking targets with his rifle. Alex, Sarah, and Alice were there. Sarah, who functioned as squad medic, was firing her Vindicator at the enemy, her silvery armor shining in the failing sunlight as she gritted her teeth and provided supporting fire for the forward team. Alex was sitting down, leaning up against the car, grimacing with a pistol clenched in his hand, his red and gray armor more red than usual. Alice was standing on one leg taking shots with a geth rifle she had picked up while blood dripped down her left leg and arm.

Andrew shouted over the radio, "2 more geth left!" A final flash of light and as David destroyed the corner of the Mayor's house and blasted the last 2 geth into pieces.

Grant called out on the radio, "Area clear, move up the wounded. The house is open, let's get inside. Sarah, Sam, collect Alex and Alice and move in after us." Alice was able to walk on her own. Sarah and Sam had to help Alex into the building, in spite of his protests. The house had been abandoned. The Mayor had a tunnel built underneath his house to allow for a fast escape. There was no point in sending anyone to look for him; there were more pressing matters.

Grant was discussing the situation with Andreleev, "We need to rest up, even with liberal applications of medi-gel Alex will be down for at least 15 hours. What we really need is reinforcements…I understand but we can't take a whole town from 300 plus geth alone and we can't just bomb the town either…Ok, understood. Alright everyone gather round, we don't have the manpower to march into this town and take it over, what we can do is draw an attack to this villa, maybe give any remaining colonists a chance to escape. This isn't a suicide mission. We leaked this attack. Help could arrive in a few hours, it could be a week. We don't know. As far as supplies go, this house has plenty of stockpiled food, water, and medical supplies. Dig in, we may be here a while." The group disbanded and set up to have a 360 degree field of vision, 2 men to each side of the building on 4 hour shifts.

Alice was set up with Sam to create a maze of traps on the main road, consisting of IEDs and electronic cell traps designed to shock and disable synthetic enemies. The danger was mitigated due to the Maltera watching for synthetic signatures, nothing showed up. Alex was paired with Sarah to keep an eye on him. David and Peter were linked up to watch the front side of the building as that was where the attack was most likely to come and David could hold off a squad for the crucial seconds it would take to bring up the rest of the team. Andrew and Grant watched the rear of the building. Rina was left in the middle to respond anywhere quickly and erect the biggest barrier she could in order to stall for more time but also because no one knew how she would handle the stress of the situation. The Kodiak was sent down to drop FENRIR mechs programmed to run through the streets towards the mansion, hopefully luring the geth into a trap. All they could do was wait for the attack to come.


	7. Chapter 7

The attack came as the sun crept over the mountains in the distance. A mass of geth had picked their way along the trap-ridden path, losing numbers left and right but continuing along all the same. All in all, about 260 of the 300 present geth made it to the mayor's house. "They're coming up the southern path! Rally on me!" David shouted in the radio. Alex and Sarah were the first to respond. Alex still had some pain in his stomach but was fit enough to fight. Sarah was still a little worried about him but couldn't entertain those notions while shooting. Rina, Andrew, and Grant were the next to arrive, taking up positions on the second floor as Alex and Sarah hustled down the stairs to provide fire from the first floor and also to distract any geth attempting to hack the door.

Grant ordered, "Rina, Andrew. When Sam and Alice get here, tell Alice to go downstairs, Sam stays with you. Rina, focus on whatever enemy is closest, tear 'em apart. Andrew, you know what to do." He turned away and headed down stairs. Alice and Sam arrived last as Alice was still having a little trouble with her leg, it had healed mostly but still hurt enough to cause a limp. Andrew relayed the orders. Alice moved as quickly as she could to get down the stairs, her dark hair looking wild and disheveled from last night's stresses. Sam stayed on the second floor and took up a position a few feet back from a window, looking for opportunities to make kills with his Widow (restrictions put in place once again, no need to risk injury). The large force of geth continued moving forward in spite of the mounting firepower from the team. Rockets tore streaks through the air. Rounds from conventional weapons, geth rifles, and the rockets flying back and forth turned the battlefield into a chaotic cacophony of explosions and rifle reports. Orders were no longer necessary, everyone knew the only thing to do was keep shooting, keep throwing, keep tearing apart. Sam had been thinning the enemies back ranks, on his 15th shot and the resulting kill, he saw a bright flash to his left and then he was lying on the floor. When he could see again Andrew was standing over him. His mouth was moving but there was no sound. Sam saw the dust floating and realized that an enemy rocket must have sent him flying. He became aware of a hot, shooting pain in his left arm. He looked down and saw a sizeable chunk of scorched metal about 6 inches long sticking out of the plate on his forearm.

_It's been too long since I've been shot, _Sam thought to himself

Andrew's mouth eventually began making sounds, "Sam, you alright? You hear me?"

Sam shook his head, everything coming up to speed, "Yeah, I'm alright, nothing serious. I need a pistol though." Andrew removed his Carnifex and handed it to Sam.

Andrew nodded and said with a smirk, "Get back in the fight." Sam headed to another window as his first one had little cover left in place from the explosion. He switched his focus to shorter range targets, shooting any geth who came within range. Rina and Alice were busy. As Sam was shooting he noticed Rina from the corner of his eye coated in blue energy and making the tell-tale hand signals of using biotic abilities, she seemed able to handle the stress, though her powers were a little less effective because of repeated use. A geth destroyer was pulled into the air and subsequently ripped appart, the gas tank landing on the ground presented and opportunity. David seized it and shot a rocket, the resulting explosion significantly larger, demolished several geth by concussion or shrapnel. A singularity developed on the field, Alice had created it to drag several geth out of their cover near demolished cars and farming equipment. Rina, with visible strain, created a singularity on the exact same location, creating a massive swirling vortex of energy that began to shake the house.

The geth frigate made its presence known for the first time. It dropped a colossus about 60m from the house. Its legs deployed and it began firing its auto-cannon and its main gun, slowly destroying the house and the remaining cover in the windows. Sam ducked down just in time as the repeated rounds plowed into the cabinet laid down in front of the window, picking away the metal. The colossus changed targets and sent rounds down towards Rina.

Sam shouted, "GET DOWN!" Rina turned having just thrown another geth, heard the order, and her brown eyes wide with fear, hit the floor as the first rounds piled into the wall behind her, destroying a replica of the Mona Lisa. The colossus stopped firing, allowing its guns to cool.

A new, alien voice crackled over the radio on the open channel, "This is Deren'Khala, captain of the ship Velara. We heard your distress beacon. Are there really geth here?"

Grant, also over the same open channel, replied, "Yes, captain, they're really here. Do you have any soldiers to send?"

"Yes, we have a small strike team. Our guns are trained on that colossus. We will be landing in a few minutes. Hold their attention for a little while longer." Replied the quarian captain. The geth detected the transmission and upped the intensity, attempting to end one battle before the quarians arrived. The colossus began trying to blow through the first floor door. The geth force, still at about 70-100 geth, was very intelligent and trying to find solutions. 4 rockets plowed into the front door and blew it down; it seemed the intelligent choice was brute force.

Grant shouted a hurried order, "Everyone down stairs now, hold the door!" Sam, Andrew and David got up and rushed down the stairs. When Sam arrived he saw that the first floor team had not gone untouched. Sarah had one of her arms down by her side, Grants helmet had been torn off by a shot and he had a few lines of blood streaming down his cheek. "Hold them back!" The whine of a gunship jet engine was heard over the mass of explosions and gunshots. Outside, a salvo of rockets from the quarian drop ship turned the colossus into scrap metal, blowing off one of its legs and then hammering it until the armor was pierced and a rocket exploded inside and caused many secondary kills. The gunship zoomed away a few hundred feet and a group of quarians jumped out of the back. The gunship took off and continued to provide top cover with its cannon. Enemy fire immediately began to slow down, allowing the team to expand out to all the first floor windows to provide a deadly crossfire. The massive amounts of fire from both of the teams coupled with the deadly accurate shooting of the gunship pilot created a synthetic massacre in the middle. The geth numbers and fire dropped off very quickly. The expert marksmanship of both the teams called an end to the siege. "Everyone, move out and clean up. Sarah, look after Pete and yourself." The rifle specialist had taken a shot through the shoulder and had a chunk of shrapnel through the flexible area under his arm. Sarah had scorch marks on her armor and minor wounds on her legs from the blast of a rocket.

The two teams met in the middle of the field in front of the house. Grant offered his hand to the quarian captain who extended his own and they shook. "Damn good thing you showed up..." Grant trailed off not knowing how to address his new comrade in arms.

"Its Deren. On top of being the captain I lead the strike team, it's a small ship. If you don't mind me asking, what are you doing here Captain...?" Trailing off the same way because Grant had never said his name.

"It's Grant, and I _only_ lead the strike team. We are here on…behalf of a concerned party." Grant replied understanding the need for discretion.

"That's hardly an answer." Replied the quarian. The rest of the team had walked away with the quarian team. There were 10 of them, a mix of males and females. All of them had a friendly chat as they shot the odd geth still attempting to fight back or reactivate. Sam found himself talking to a shotgun-armed female quarian named Nera'Liel. Her suit was a black base with grey accents and a swirling pattern that looked similar to the way wind blows across the tops of tall grass that was on the plains. Her mask was a deep blue and her eyes shone through, bright like all of her race.

"How old are you anyway?" She said in an accent that reminded Sam of a female version of Andreleev, translation software was funny like that.

"23. You?"

"26. Ahh, you want any help with that?" She asked looking at the chunk of shrapnel still sticking out of his suit, "I am my team medic."

"Sure." Replied Sam, realizing that it hurt once again as his adrenaline rush had worn off.

"Take a seat." The quarian said, motioning to a burned out car as she holstered her shotgun. She deftly removed the gauntlet of his hardsuit, seperating the pieces into the top and bottom, slowly wiggling the top one off, trying to aviod causing more pain. Sam winced once or twice but nothing too bad. She took out a syringe from a bag attached around her left thigh. Sam began to protest, knowing that his phisiology wouldn't be compatible with quarian drugs, "Don't worry, it's for humans. I wouldn't be a very good medic if I poisoned my patient." She replied as she swabbed the area and injected a clear fluid and instantly the pain vanished. She removed a large pair of tweezers and slowly worked the chunk of metal out. "Here, a trophy." She said while handing the shrapnel to him. She then applied some medi-gel. "Ok, all set, put your glove back on and let's get moving." They continued to walk around, looking for any geth survivors.

Grant called on the radio, "Everyone get back to me, and bring the quarians too." They all walked back. Sarah and Pete had arrived. Pete was looking a little pale but he was still standing. Very happy to be alive, he walked up to every quarian, asked his or her name, and said thank you.

Alice spoke up, "Same goes for all of us. Thank you, we'd all be dead without you." Bringing an extra air of solemnity to the situation.

The quarian captain replied, "You are all very welcome. We have been searching for geth to fight for some time. We appreciate the opportunity. Your commander told me you came to try to rescue the colony." with downcast eyes, "I had my ship do a scan. I'm sorry, there is no one left alive here."

Grant turned rage flashing behind his eyes, "This won't happen again. We won't be too late another time. Next time, we don't wait for them, we attack and destroy all of them, no matter what the cost." The team was struck by the news. All their injuries, all their fighting had been for nothing.

Their radio crackled, it was Andreleev, "Time to leave. Pack up, we are sending the Kodiak down." The team quickly said their final goodbyes to their quarian rescuers and shot off into the sky, determined to never lose another settlement.


	8. Chapter 8

The crew had gone through the debriefing silently. No one spoke or raised a protest to what Grant and Andreleev. All had retreated back to their individual rooms. All except Sam, he did what he always did after a blown job; practice shooting until he believed that the next mission would not turn out the same way. He spent hours firing and tuning all his weapons, even his old Mantis, until he could hit the smallest 2'' by 2'' targets at the end of the small range. After Sam left he realized that he hadn't had a real meal for at least a day. He went down the long straight corridor to the mess hall. Rina and Alice were sitting across from one another, talking.

"Listen, when it comes to raw biotic power, you have me beat. I have control though. Things like a controlled, non-expanding, singularity aren't raw power. They have to be controlled or you end up endangering your allies." Alice instructed. Sam continued walking and saw Alice's lesson. She was trying to get Rina to be able to hold a fragile glass ball without shattering it. "That's good. Maintaining that focus is at the heart of having control. Doing it on the battlefield is another thing entirely." Rina nodded in assent, hands bathed in a thin blue. Combat had changed her personality. She was much quieter and had a renewed focus to match her amazing ability to learn quickly. "One more thing, don't let combat change you too much. This new focus and determination is a good thing. The silence, well, I like the quiet but it doesn't suit you...Alright, lesson concluded. Practice until you can maintain that gentle of a field while listening to whatever noise Alex listens to."

Sam walked over and said, "How's she holding up?"

"She's alright. Most other civilians would have problems coping with an operation like that and she is...different now." Alice replied, "Some of those changes are good but, I worry about how serious she is getting."

"Serious is good. Granted, it's not really like her, well, the little we know about her." Sam said.

"Ever been through anything that hairy before?" Alice asked, trying to change the subject

"Well, a job for a turian officer comes to mind. He wanted a blackmailer dead." Seeing that Alice was about to speak "It's not my place to ask what for so don't ask me either. Well, anyway, he told me that there would be a drop made later that day. Naturally, the turian never planned to show up. The drop was taking place in an agricultural area just on the edge of a small settlement, open area, long lines of sight. The colony was still pretty small; it was just a turian fringe world, one of the few ones near the Terminus, its how I got the job."

"Seems pretty simple really. Where did things get complicated?" Alice wondered

"Turned out our salarian blackmailer was an agent for the shadow broker. Therefore, he had a lot of security, including Eclipse mercs using thermal scan tech; unfortunately, my armor is only good against visual and electronic detection. I really need a new set. Anyway, I had a few moments to get the shot off before they found me. Then, I would be pretty screwed because of the rifle flash and sound. I ended up having to run through a small farming community with a gunship on my ass. They were on someone else's payroll and apparently he told them to kill me. Well, long story short, I ran down an alley, set up, took aim and killed the pilot. Then, I had to deal with the turian police, but that's a different story entirely, and a slightly less interesting one…How about you?"

"Nothing that harrowing today was definitely the worst day for me. I couldn't imagine having to do this kind of a job solo." Alice said, still a little depressed about the outcome, "Well I'm headed to bed. You should hit the sack too."

"Yeah none of us has slept much." Sam replied as he turned and walked down the hallway with Alice. Even with bags under her icy blue eyes she was still pretty. Her long black hair was tucked into a ponytail. Sam arrived at his door, "Well good night, see ya tomorrow." Sam walked to his bed and fell asleep before his head hit the pillow.

The next time Sam awoke, he discovered that he the team was on another leave, this time on the Citadel. "Due to the high security around the Citadel, we are only allowed to send the Kodiak, Mr. Durrant. If you wish to follow the rest of the fire-team you will have to wait until the shuttle returns." Sally informed

"Thanks Sally, did anyone stay behind?" Sam said with just a twinge of his mistrust. He still didn't trust the A.I. and this mistrust if Sally had begun to spread to a general mistrust of Cerberus. While Sam enjoyed the new tech and the considerable pay scale, anyone with the resources that Cerberus had couldn't really be trusted. Who knows how they get their money? Sam thought to himself.

"No one remains aboard. Mr. Durrant, shall I call the shuttle for you?" Sam mulled it over for a few seconds then realized that he would rather be on the Citadel surrounded by people he didn't know then be left alone in an empty, listless ship, at least the Citadel doesn't talk to you, well doesn't for the most part, can't forget about the VI tourist system.

"Yeah, sure, call the ship Sally." Said the exasperated Sam

"As you command, the shuttle will arrive in approximately 23 minutes."


End file.
